TORONTO – In 1972, musical icon Adriano Celentano released a gibberish track titled “Prisencolinensinainciusol”. English language songs ruled the charts in Italy during the 70s, and musicians like the Jackson 5, Abba and the Beegees charmed Italians as much as their native audiences. As somewhat of a social experiment, Celentano set out to prove that Italians would sheepishly listen to anything that sounded English – and he did so by releasing a song whose lyrics mimicked American English. He was right. The fake English song went to number 1 on French, German and Italian charts. 

Fifty-five years later, Italy’s fascination with the American music culture has grown. Only now, many Italian musicians have wholly adopted one very specific American genre. Rap. This particular appreciation for Americana hip hop has morphed into an obsession, with Italian Rap artists [over the last ten years] selling multi-platinum records. And now, Italian Actress and Producer Eleonora Rotari has directed her first film Dreams, about a young man in small-town Calabria dreaming of becoming a Rap star.

After receiving an award at the 79th Venice Film Festival for her commitment to addressing social issues in Hoganbiiki, il Valore della Sconfitta, Rotari’s film Dreams went on to win Best Feature in Competition at the 14th annual Foggia Film Festival in December. Dreams interweaves the lives of four struggling teens on the precipice of adulthood, all trying to balance their respective responsibilities with realizing their childhood dreams. The main character Alex, played by real life Rap Artist Edo Fendy, copes with the disapproval of his parents and the insecurity of his girlfriend, as he strives to earn his shot at stardom.

Director Eleonora Rotari: “I needed a film that reminded us what real emotions are, and it doesn’t matter if not all are positive. Because real life is this, the loneliness of a teenager, the sense of guilt, the euphoria for a small gesture, the conflict with parents. These are palpable emotions in all the sequences of the film where the protagonists do everything to make their dreams come true even at the expense of [their] values”.

Also in the film is upcoming starlet Eleonora Gaggero. The Genoa born actress launched with the Disney Channel television series Alex & Co in 2015. And only four years later the Giffoni Film Festival recognized her with the Explosive Talent Award. Most recently, Gaggero was cast in 10 episodes of Amazon’s Roman Epic Series “Those About to Die”.

Dreams is continuing its festival circuit with a potential theatrical run in late 2025.

(Images of Edo Fendy in Dreams courtesy of Premiere Film; images of Eleonora Gaggero in Dreams courtesy of Premiere Film)    

Massimo Volpe is a filmmaker and freelance writer from Toronto: he writes reviews of Italian films/content on Netflix